There was once a time when Gareth Bale could have joined Chelsea. But he would go to Real Madrid, where he would play alongside the world’s best, including two former Chelsea players.
Bale would win five Champions League trophies during his time at Real Madrid and three La Liga titles as he formed one of football’s best-ever attacking trios, alongside Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema.
These days, Bale is retired after a brief stint in the MLS with LAFC and is renowned for his golfing ability. But what is most impressive about Bale’s career, perhaps, is the players he once called teammates.
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Recently, Bale took part in the Icons Series alongside Gianfranco Zola and John Terry, and he was asked to name his best XI of former teammates. Among them, Bale named two former Chelsea players.
Bale names Eden Hazard and Thibaut Courtois in best XI
During his time in Madrid, Bale played alongside some of the best players to ever play the game. It goes without saying that Ronaldo and Benzema were named in his XI, as were Sergio Ramos and Marcelo.
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But he also included two former Chelsea players. The Wales legend picked Thibaut Courtois, while also including Eden Hazard, who struggled during his time in Madrid but Bale chose to pick due to his career.
Luka Modric, Casemiro, Toni Kroos, Kyle Walker and Raphael Varane were also chosen by the former Tottenham and Southampton icon. That is, of course, without being able to pick himself.
Bale explained his decision to pick Hazard: “If I don’t pick myself, I’d probably go Hazard. I know, maybe, he didn’t have the best time in Madrid. But as a player, in his career, he was unbelievable.”
Chelsea sold Courtois to Real Madrid in 2018 for just £35m, and he remains at the Santiago Bernabeu, while Hazard followed Courtois to Madrid a year later, costing £130m.
How close did Bale come to joining Chelsea himself?
After becoming one of the Premier League’s best players, Real Madrid opted to splash a world-record £80m to land the left-footed star. A year later, however, Bale was already linked with a return.
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Indeed, Bale had not endeared himself to the Madrid faithful largely due to the price tag placed on his shoulders. The Express reported, in the summer of 2024, that Bale was a £150m target for Chelsea.
Bale is claimed to have rejected Chelsea a year after joining Madrid. We might never know just how close Bale came to moving to West London, which would have been controversial given the Spurs rivalry.
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